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Rapid High-Performance Liquid Chromatography Determination of Tocopherols and Tocotrienols in Cereals

¹University of Copenhagen, Faculty of LIFE Sciences, Department of Food Science, Quality & Technology, Rolighedsvej 30, DK-1958 Frederiksberg C, Denmark ²Corresponding author: aah@life.ku.dk

A rapid normal-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (NP-HPLC) method has been developed for rapid determination of the total content of tocopherols (T) and tocotrienols (T3) in cereals. The new method uses a one-step extraction followed by NP-HPLC coupled with a fluorescence detector. The new method provides a baseline separation of the critical peaks of beta-tocotrienol (β-T3) and gamma-tocopherol (γ-T) within a short time of analysis. The extraction step requires no saponification step or addition of antioxidant. Addition of butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) had no effect on the stability of vitamin E during sampling. The recovery was 96–100%. The method is demonstrated by successful quantification of vitamin E in barley, wheat, and spelt grains, as well as wheat germ and flours from wheat, spelt, and rye.